Tibetan activists protest Chinese Foreign Minister’s visit to India
DHARAMSALA, 21 Dec: Tibetan activists greeted visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi with protests highlighting the illegal occupation of Tibet by the Chinese communist regime and cautioning China’s representation in the Indo-Tibet border issue.
Activists from Students for a Free Tibet-India (SFT) earlier today unfurled a huge banner from the flyover near the Airport in the Indian capital minutes before the Chinese Foreign Minister’s arrival for the 22nd round of border talks between India and China.
Wang Yi was greeted by the activists with a giant 32 ft banner that read ‘WANG YI! NO RIGHT TO TALK ON INDO-TIBET BORDER,’ cautioning China’s representation in Indo-Tibet border issue as it is Tibet that shares boundary with India and not China.
“We strongly condemn and reject China’s representation in the Indo-Tibet border issue as it is Tibet that India shares its border. China historically never shared any borders with India. Without the representation and voice of Tibet, this so-called India- China border dialogue is entirely invalid,” said Gyaltsen, Campaigns Director for Students for a Free Tibet, as they unfurled the huge banner in protest.
The SFT has further said in their statement that Tibet has been a buffer state between the two Asian giants before CHina’s illegal occupation of Tibet as the special representatives of the two Asian giants are set for the discussion on their border dispute today in New Delhi.
India’s National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and the Chinese Foreign Minister are the designated Special Representatives of the two countries for the boundary talks.
The meeting will reportedly focus on the delimitation of the border, boundary management, and several other bilateral issues.
The statement also stressed on the fact that the McMahon line that demarcates Tibet and India as a result of a bilateral treaty that was signed between independent Tibet and British India in 1914 as part of the Simla Convention.
“By recognising the importance of Tibet as a buffer zone, India can protect itself from further encroachment of People’s Republic of China’s,” said Rinzin Choedon, National Director for Students for a Free Tibet, India.
“Without this recognition, China will continue to inflict military pressure on India and the issue will not be resolved.”
The activists from the SFT has also staged a nonviolent protest after unfurling the banner from the flyover that overlooks the road which Wang Yi’s motorcade will pass through.
China having illegally occupied Tibet now shares the border with India and the border dispute covers 3,488-km-long Line of Actual Control.
Highlighting the grave situation inside Tibet, SFT stated in their statement that even after 60 years of illegal occupation of Tibet by China, Tibetans inside Tibet continue to resist illegal Chinese rule through various means of nonviolent protests.
“Currently Tibet is facing multifaceted crisis apart from lack of political and human rights, the statement read.
The 22nd round of border talks between India and China comes at the foot of India pulling out of the proposed Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) earlier in Nov.
It is the first high-level visit from China to India after the Modi-Xi summit in Chennai in Oct.
